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TubeRank Offers Inspiration for Viral Video Creation

TubeRank takes some of the magic out of creating a viral video and adds a little science in its place.

This online application was created by the people at agency VAN (Viral Ad Network). TubeRank first saw life in early 2012 as an internal project looking for insights on what makes a video go viral. The application sorts videos by “conversation triggers” and “communities of interest,” which essentially means content and viewers. What properties does a video contain? Is it funny? Touching? Educational? Why does it get shared? And what group does it appeal to?

By sorting videos with those criteria, comparing each video’s share-to-view ratio, and looking at which videos are recommended by key influencers in different communities, the people at VAN are able to recommend videos that are proven successes with different audiences.

The result of all that tallying is TubeRank, a tool for viral video inspiration. Open the TubeRank page, select the conversation triggers that you want in your own video, choose the viewer interests that you want to appeal to, and indicate whether you’re looking for user-generated or branded videos. As you input your requests, TubeRank gets to work finding the best videos that meet your criteria. View the videos for inspiration, then study metrics for each such as views and share-to-view ratio.

For a little more insight, you can click to download a customized viral video insight report based on the options you selected. This requires free registration with VAN, but it’s worth it. The research offers a deeper look into what it takes to appeal to online video viewers. It shows how videos with the criteria you’ve selected have performed in the past, and offers best practices on making a viral video hit.

Even if you’re not in the viral video business, TubeRank is a fun toy to play with. But if you are, the combination of inspiration and insight it offers could be valuable. It’s free, you’ve got nothing to lose. Give TubeRank a try and see if you come up with your own viral sensation.